#39;Cyborg Soldiers #39; Arrive Home on Leave: Ukrainian troops defending Donetsk Airport over half a year
Over fifty Ukrainian #39;cyborg soldiers #39; were given a heroes #39; welcome this morning in Zhitomyr when they arrived on leave from the front lines in east Ukraine. Check out our website: http://uatoday....
By: UKRAINE TODAY
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Top 10 beaches in Goa Best beaches in Goa Goa Beaches
Watch Top 10 beaches in Goa. You can also see top 10 beaches in north Goa and south Goa. Popular Links Places to visit in Goa (http://youtu.be/ROKd0y62pYw) Popular Beaches in Goa ...
By: Sightseeing.Trekking Travel
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Top 10 beaches in Goa Best beaches in Goa Goa Beaches - Video
Popular Beaches in Goa Best beaches in Goa Top beaches in Goa Tourism in Goa
Find the List of best Goa beaches with all info about unexplored best beaches in Goa crowded highly, popular and most famous beaches in Goa. Popular Links Places to visit in Goa (http://youtu.be/...
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Popular Beaches in Goa Best beaches in Goa Top beaches in Goa Tourism in Goa - Video
Beaches Toronto Chiropractor - Hip Flexor - Health and Wellness tips
Some tips on care for the hip flexor - very important to the low back mechanics. With prolonged sitting or driving these muscles are often chronically contracted and shortened.
By: Beaches Health Group
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Beaches Toronto Chiropractor - Hip Flexor - Health and Wellness tips - Video
Beaches Health Group - Hip Issues - Health and Wellness tips
Dr. Kelly Robazza of Beaches Health Group in Toronto talks about Hip Issues. The hip joint is a ball and socket joint that transfers a lot of your weight bearing into motion. With all of the...
By: Beaches Health Group
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Beaches Health Group - Hip Issues - Health and Wellness tips - Video
Dirty Beaches - "Time Washes Everything Away"
Dirty Beaches - "Time Washes Everything Away" 2014 Directed by Loic Zimmermann ------ SUBSCRIBE to Pitchfork.tv: http://bit.ly/yK2Fbp ------ Follow Pitchfork...
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| Iran Today | Beaches, ports Eleventh International Conference | SaharTV Urdu
Broadcast Date-:- 08 December 2014 -Website: http://urdu.sahartv.ir/archive/video/ -Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/saharurdutv -Twitter: https://twitter.com/SaharTvUrdu -Google+ http://www.gplus.t...
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| Iran Today | Beaches, ports Eleventh International Conference | SaharTV Urdu - Video
Winston Churchill We Shall Fight Them On The Beaches.3gp
SATANISTI: 322 SALAFITI E FARISEI: hanno trasformato la diplomazia in un cumulo di menzogne! Demoliscono le torri gemelle, uccidono 3000 cittadini americani, dicono che Saddam Hussein: ha le...
By: 666 regno NWO Unito Gezabele 2
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Winston Churchill We Shall Fight Them On The Beaches.3gp - Video
By JAMES M. ONEILL
AP FILE PHOTO
A red knot, center, feeds among ruddy turnstones and sanderlings along the Delaware Bay shoreline in Middle Township, N.J.
The red knot, a migratory shore bird that stops along beaches in New Jersey to fatten up for the last leg of its yearly journey, has been declared threatened by the federal government under the Endangered Species Act.
Since the 1980s, the red knot population has plummeted by about 75 percent, due to loss of habitat from coastal development and a significant drop in horseshoe crabs whose eggs the red knot eats to fuel its 9,000-mile spring migration from the southern tip of South America to breeding sites in the Canadian Arctic.
The bird was already declared endangered by New Jersey, but the new federal listing could provide more financial resources to projects that restore red knot habitat, federal officials said. The listing also means that federal agencies must take into consideration the impact on red knots when involved in projects that affect the birds habitat.
Using the best scientific studies available, we have indication the red knot will likely be in danger of extinction in the foreseeable future, Dan Ashe, director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, said Monday when announcing the listing. The agency oversees the endangered species program.
As part of the listing process, over the next year the agency will conduct an assessment of critical habitat essential for the red knots survival on the Atlantic Coast, including beaches along Delaware Bay where about 50,000 birds feed on horseshoe crab eggs each spring. The report on critical habitat should be ready in a year.
The red knot is an amazing creature, with one of these mystical, magical migrations, Ashe said. The oldest known red knot, aged 21, has accumulated enough miles over its marathon migrations to have flown to the moon and halfway back.
The red knot population declined through the 1980s and 1990s as Delaware Bay horseshoe crabs were overharvested. The crab has been used as farm fertilizer, as bait for eel and conch traps, and for its blue blood, which has a clotting agent used by the drug industry.
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Many of us have fond childhood memories of visits to the beach and pleasant times spent there whether sunbathing, walking, fishing, surfing, or simply enjoying the atmosphere. But beaches have even more to offer: They sustain life.
Most of the ecosystem is invisible to us, since it is within the sand, but we can readily appreciate the birds, turtles, and seals, as well as the commercial fisheries (clams, mackerel) that depend on healthy beaches.
Above all, however, beaches are remarkable natural defenses against the power of the sea. While seawalls crumble and cliffs collapse, beaches absorb the power of the waves by changing their shape.
Why, then, if beaches are such wonderful attractions, ecosystems, and sea defenses, are they in trouble?
We have impacted beaches worldwide, degrading them with pollution, oil, and litter, by driving on them, and by physically destroying them. Many beaches have been completely obliterated, and there are entire stretches of coast where not a single natural beach survives.
Instead, poor imitations of the real thing artificial or replenished beaches line the coasts of southern Europe, the eastern United States, and the Persian Gulf, to name but a few. Most beaches on Spains famous costas are human constructions long, thin engineering projects that provide a recreational area, but otherwise bear no more resemblance to a natural beach than a city park bears to an indigenous forest.
Most beaches are being destroyed by our efforts to hold them in place and protect beachfront property. Flexibility is the key to a beachs survival. When we limit beaches by building seawalls, groins, and breakwaters to hold them in place, we remove their ability to adjust, and thus fatally weaken them rather like tying a boxers hands behind his back and expecting him to survive the full 12 rounds.
Sand is the lifeblood of beaches. Taking the sand from a beach is a sure way to destroy it. Yet, beach sand mining is widespread. Sand is a valuable commodity, equaled only by water in the scale of human demand for a natural resource.
Beach sand is often seen as a free and easily exploited resource, so, in many parts of the world, beach sand is big business. Ironically, sand is mined from some beaches simply to replenish eroded beaches elsewhere.
The value of beach sand is well illustrated by the theft of an entire beach (500 truckloads) in Jamaica in 2008 that was never recovered, despite a police investigation.
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Beaches Is Broadway Bound; Musical Will Continue Development in Chicago
By .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) 08 Dec 2014
Beaches, the new musical adapted from the 1985 novel by Iris Rainer Dart which premiered earlier this year at Virginia's Signature Theatre starring Mara Davi and Alysha Umphress will replace Deathtrap in Drury Lane Theatre's 2015-16 season.
Eric Schaeffer (Signature's artistic director, Follies, Million Dollar Quartet), who helmed the musical's world premiere, will again direct the Broadway-bound production, which will run June 24-Aug. 16, 2015.
Opening night is set for July 2. Casting was not announced.
"This is one of the most exciting seasons that weve ever presented in our 31-year history," said Kyle DeSantis, president of Drury Lane Theatre, in a statement. "We are elated to produce Beaches, the first new production in two decades on the Drury Lane stage, as well as two Regional Premieres and two musical revivals. We believe that we have a responsibility to help cultivate the development of new works and this season marks our renewed commitment to this."
Beaches marks the first new work on the Drury Lane stage in 21 years and signifies the theatre's renewed dedication to develop new works.
According to Drury Lane, "The production is a poignant yet uplifting story of two extraordinary women exemplifying the triumph of the human spirit and the bonds of sisterhood. Beaches was adapted from the 1985 novel by Iris Rainer Dart, which was later adapted into the popular 1988 film starring Bette Midler and Barbara Hershey."
The musical features a book by Iris Rainer Dart and Thom Thomas, lyrics by Iris Rainer Dart and music by David Austin.
The season will also include the regional premiere of Billy Elliott (April 10-June 7, 2015, with an April 16 opening), directed by Rachel Rockwell with musical direction by Roberta Duchak; Peter and the Starcatcher (Aug. 27-Oct. 18, 2015, with a Sept. 3 opening), directed by Drury artistic director William Osetek; White Christmas (Oct. 29-Jan. 3, 2016, with a Nov. 5 opening), directed by Osetek with choreography by Matthew Crowle; and Bye Bye Birdie (Jan. 14-March 20, 2016, with a Jan. 21 opening), directed and choreographed by Tammy Mader.
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Beaches Is Broadway Bound; Musical Will Continue Development in Chicago
LEWES, Del. - The Lewes City Council voted Monday night to ban smoking regular and e-cigarettes on all beaches. Currently, the city has a ban at parks, but now will expand to be all-encompassing.
According to Councilmember Bonnie Osler, who spearheaded the ban, eliminating litter as well as protecting public health were the main reasons.
"I think getting second hand smoke off of the beaches is a good health move for people," she said. "Reducing littering is a good health move and again it means we have the same rules in all of our parks and beaches so we're uniform in our approach."
Osler said the reason they included e-cigarettes was because although there is not conclusive evidence against second-hand smoke, there are still potential health problems associated with the vapors.
"It's true that people on a beach may smell a cigarette that someone is smoking but that's not the cause for a ban," he explained. "That's the cause for a sensible rule where you just ask the person please don't smoke or move to a different location where their smoke is not effecting others."
He also questioned the e-cigarette portion of the ban.
But according to Osler, following in the footsteps of other beaches across the country will benefit the city in the long term.
"We all want to use the beaches and so we all have to play by the same rules in order to make it a safe and happy experience for everyone," she said.
The American Lung Association is providing a $10,214 grant for the signage and implementation of this ban. Osler said she does not expect the city to issue many citations as people start to learn about the ban, unless there is any flagrant violations.
To learn more about e-cigarettes on Delmarva, read the story on vaping by WBOC's Michael Chesney here.
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Astronomy C13 - 2014-12-04: Outstanding Questions Prospects for the Futu
Astronomy C13, 001 - Fall 2014 Origins: from the Big Bang to the Emergence of Humans - Charles Marshall, Eliot Quataert All Rights Reserved.
By: UCBerkeley
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Astronomy C13 - 2014-12-04: Outstanding Questions & Prospects for the Futu - Video
If the European Space Agency (ESA) can put a probe on a reckless comet out beyond the orbit of Mars, suddenly sending humans to the Red Planet seems altogether doable. Coupled with last weeks successful test launch of NASAs Orion spacecraft, talk of astronaut encampments on Mars now actually appears credible.
If so, where would the first manned mission to Mars choose to set up shop?
There are three basic criteria for picking a Mars manned landing site a spot thats sustainable in terms of water, energy generation and building materials. One thats scientifically interesting for a lengthy mission. And, most importantly, one that is safe to land. Thus far, most researchers remain wary of committing themselves to any given site. But theres no time thats too early to get [the site selection process] started, John Grant, a planetary scientist at the Smithsonians National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C., told Forbes. The more imaging and radar data youre able to collect about a site; the better your odds of satisfying all the constraints.
Grant, who was co-chair of NASAs Mars Curiosity Rover landing site steering committee, doesnt think a human landing site selection process would look a whole lot different from that for the Mars rovers. Engineering, science and resource criteria would drive the process forward, with the overarching idea, he says, being that if you dont land safely, you dont get anything.
West of Valles Marineris lies a checkerboard named Noctis Labyrinthus, which formed when the Martian crust stretched and fractured. As faults opened, they released subsurface ice and water, causing the ground to collapse. This westward view combines images taken during the period from April 2003 to September 2005 by the Thermal Emission Imaging System instrument on NASAs Mars Odyssey orbiter. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/ASU
Here is a countdown of five top possibilities as suggested by Brian Hynek, a planetary scientist and Director of the Center for Astrobiology at the University of Colorado at Boulder.
5) Martian lava tubes and caves.
These equatorial lava caves were only discovered in the last few years by images that identified skylights, or breaks in the top of a buried lava tube, Hynek told Forbes. He says that a potential landing site near the large shield volcano Pavonis Mons in the Tharsis region hosts a number of lava caves which could shelter astronauts shelter from deadly cosmic and solar radiation as well as provide a constant ambient temperature.
Hynek also notes that the proximity to such volcanic sites would offer astronauts a scientific boon. Thats because understanding Mars volcanic history would constrain models of the planets interior and climate, and determine when its volcanoes were actually active.
Pros: The astronauts wouldnt get cancer in three months, which may be a possibility if they are sitting on the surface for that long, said Hynek.
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chengaikanan #39;s ASTRO-PHYSICS-MATHS
K.P ASTROLOGER SAIRAMANA@CHENGAIKANAN 9245183905.
By: chengai kannan
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CHENGAIKANAN #39;S ASTRO-PHYSICS-MATHS PART1
K.P ASTROLOGER SAIRAMANA@CHENGAIKANAN 9245183905.
By: chengai kannan
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Newswise Fairfax, Va., December 9, 2014The use of hypofractionated whole-breast irradiation (HF-WBI) for patients with early-stage breast cancer increased 17.4 percent from 2004 to 2011, and patients are more likely to receive HF-WBI compared to conventionally fractionated whole-breast irradiation (CF-WBI) when they are treated at an academic center or live 50 miles away from a cancer center, according to a study published in the December 1, 2014 issue of the International Journal of Radiation Oncology Biology Physics (Red Journal), the official scientific journal of the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO).
An analysis of randomized trials[1] demonstrated that patients with early-stage breast cancer who are treated with breast-conserving surgery and adjuvant whole-breast irradiation have improved survival and a lower risk of tumor recurrence compared to patients who are not treated with radiation therapy. Patients are commonly treated with CF-WBI; however, several recent randomized trials[2-5] have confirmed that patients treated with HF-WBI have similar disease-free and overall survival rates as those treated with CF-WBI. CF-WBI delivers a total dose of 45-50 Gy in 25-28 daily fractions of 1.8-2.0 Gy over five to six weeks, while HF-WBI uses a shorter treatment course and a lower total dose and number of fractions, delivering a total dose of 39-42.5 Gy in 13-16 daily fractions of 2.5-3.2 Gy over three to five weeks.
This study, Adoption of Hypofractionated Whole-Breast Irradiation for Early-Stage Breast Cancer: A National Cancer Data Base Analysis, is a retrospective review of 113,267 early-stage breast cancer patients in the National Cancer Data Base (NCDB) from 2004 to 2011 who were treated with radiation therapy and were eligible to receive HF-WBI, and examines the use of HF-WBI compared to CF-WBI and the factors, including facility type and patients distance from the radiation treatment center, that influenced which type of WBI the patient received.
The NCDB, a joint program of the American College of Surgeons Commission on Cancer and the American Cancer Society established in 1989, is a nationwide, facility-based data set that contains retrospective data on 70 percent of all newly diagnosed cancers in the United States.
The study identified data from early-stage breast cancer patients included in the NDCB from 2004 to 2011 who received adjuvant WBI and who were eligible to receive HF-WBI according to current guidelines and randomized trials. Eligible patients were age 50 or older at the time of diagnosis; had a first and only diagnosis of breast cancer; had pathologic stage T1-2 N0 breast cancer, based on the American Joint Committee on Cancer TNM staging classification; were treated with breast-conserving surgery; and did not receive chemotherapy. In this study, HF-WBI was defined as a fraction dose of 2.2 Gy and 4.0 Gy, and CF-WBI was defined was a fraction dose >1.5 Gy and <2.2 Gy. Regional radiation therapy total dose was limited to 40-66.4 Gy, and boost doses were limited to <21.6 Gy.
Patients who received regional nodal radiation therapy; who received brachytherapy, stereotactic radiation therapy and treatments delivered with electron, neutron or proton beams; who received fewer than 10 or more than 50 fractions; or who received radiation therapy as palliative care were not included in the analysis.
The study identified 113,267 female, early-stage breast cancer patients who were eligible for analysis. Of those patients, 11.7 percent (13,271) received HF-WBI, and 88.3 percent (99,996) received CF-WBI. Based on the data used in this study, 5.4 percent (677) of patients treated in 2004 received HF-WBI compared to the 22.8 percent (3,809) of patients treated in 2011 who received HF-WBI. While the use of HF-WBI increased, the use of CF-WBI decreased; however, CF-WBI was still prescribed for a majority of patients, with 94.6 percent (11,735) of patients receiving CF-WBI in 2004 and 77.2 percent (12,876) of patients receiving CF-WBI in 2011.
The study also examined factors that may have influenced whether a patient received HF-WBI or CF-WBI. Of the 113,267 patients who met the study criteria, 62.5 percent (70,801) of patients received treatment at a non-academic comprehensive community cancer center; 24.8 percent (28,137) of patients were treated at a community cancer program; 11.6 percent (13,174) of patients had treatment at an academic center; and 1.0 percent (1,155) of patients were treated at other types of facilities. Of the patients treated at non-academic comprehensive community cancer centers, 10.3 percent (7,313) received HF-WBI compared to 17.3 percent (4,830) of patients who had treatment at academic centers (odds ratio (OR) 0.51, 95 percent confidence interval (CI) 0.48-0.53). HF-WBI was delivered to 7.7 percent (1,018) of patients treated at community cancer programs compared to the 17.3 percent (4,830) of patients treated at academic centers (OR 0.38, 95 percent CI 0.35-0.42).
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PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:
9-Dec-2014
Contact: Michelle Kirkwood press@astro.org 703-286-1600 American Society for Radiation Oncology @ASTRO_org
Fairfax, Va., December 9, 2014--The use of hypofractionated whole-breast irradiation (HF-WBI) for patients with early-stage breast cancer increased 17.4 percent from 2004 to 2011, and patients are more likely to receive HF-WBI compared to conventionally fractionated whole-breast irradiation (CF-WBI) when they are treated at an academic center or live 50 miles away from a cancer center, according to a study published in the December 1, 2014 issue of the International Journal of Radiation Oncology Biology Physics (Red Journal), the official scientific journal of the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO).
An analysis of randomized trials[1] demonstrated that patients with early-stage breast cancer who are treated with breast-conserving surgery and adjuvant whole-breast irradiation have improved survival and a lower risk of tumor recurrence compared to patients who are not treated with radiation therapy. Patients are commonly treated with CF-WBI; however, several recent randomized trials[2-5] have confirmed that patients treated with HF-WBI have similar disease-free and overall survival rates as those treated with CF-WBI. CF-WBI delivers a total dose of 45-50 Gy in 25-28 daily fractions of 1.8-2.0 Gy over five to six weeks, while HF-WBI uses a shorter treatment course and a lower total dose and number of fractions, delivering a total dose of 39-42.5 Gy in 13-16 daily fractions of 2.5-3.2 Gy over three to five weeks.
This study, "Adoption of Hypofractionated Whole-Breast Irradiation for Early-Stage Breast Cancer: A National Cancer Data Base Analysis," is a retrospective review of 113,267 early-stage breast cancer patients in the National Cancer Data Base (NCDB) from 2004 to 2011 who were treated with radiation therapy and were eligible to receive HF-WBI, and examines the use of HF-WBI compared to CF-WBI and the factors, including facility type and patient's distance from the radiation treatment center, that influenced which type of WBI the patient received.
The NCDB, a joint program of the American College of Surgeons' Commission on Cancer and the American Cancer Society established in 1989, is a nationwide, facility-based data set that contains retrospective data on 70 percent of all newly diagnosed cancers in the United States.
The study identified data from early-stage breast cancer patients included in the NDCB from 2004 to 2011 who received adjuvant WBI and who were eligible to receive HF-WBI according to current guidelines and randomized trials. Eligible patients were age 50 or older at the time of diagnosis; had a first and only diagnosis of breast cancer; had pathologic stage T1-2 N0 breast cancer, based on the American Joint Committee on Cancer TNM staging classification; were treated with breast-conserving surgery; and did not receive chemotherapy. In this study, HF-WBI was defined as a fraction dose of 2.2 Gy and 4.0 Gy, and CF-WBI was defined was a fraction dose >1.5 Gy and <2.2 Gy. Regional radiation therapy total dose was limited to 40-66.4 Gy, and boost doses were limited to <21.6 Gy.
Patients who received regional nodal radiation therapy; who received brachytherapy, stereotactic radiation therapy and treatments delivered with electron, neutron or proton beams; who received fewer than 10 or more than 50 fractions; or who received radiation therapy as palliative care were not included in the analysis.
The study identified 113,267 female, early-stage breast cancer patients who were eligible for analysis. Of those patients, 11.7 percent (13,271) received HF-WBI, and 88.3 percent (99,996) received CF-WBI. Based on the data used in this study, 5.4 percent (677) of patients treated in 2004 received HF-WBI compared to the 22.8 percent (3,809) of patients treated in 2011 who received HF-WBI. While the use of HF-WBI increased, the use of CF-WBI decreased; however, CF-WBI was still prescribed for a majority of patients, with 94.6 percent (11,735) of patients receiving CF-WBI in 2004 and 77.2 percent (12,876) of patients receiving CF-WBI in 2011.
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Analysis shows increased use of HF-WBI for patients with early-stage breast cancer
The use of hypofractionated whole-breast irradiation (HF-WBI) for patients with early-stage breast cancer increased 17.4 percent from 2004 to 2011, and patients are more likely to receive HF-WBI compared to conventionally fractionated whole-breast irradiation (CF-WBI) when they are treated at an academic center or live 50 miles away from a cancer center, according to a study published in the December 1, 2014 issue of the International Journal of Radiation Oncology Biology Physics (Red Journal), the official scientific journal of the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO).
An analysis of randomized trials demonstrated that patients with early-stage breast cancer who are treated with breast-conserving surgery and adjuvant whole-breast irradiation have improved survival and a lower risk of tumor recurrence compared to patients who are not treated with radiation therapy. Patients are commonly treated with CF-WBI; however, several recent randomized trials[2-5] have confirmed that patients treated with HF-WBI have similar disease-free and overall survival rates as those treated with CF-WBI. CF-WBI delivers a total dose of 45-50 Gy in 25-28 daily fractions of 1.8-2.0 Gy over five to six weeks, while HF-WBI uses a shorter treatment course and a lower total dose and number of fractions, delivering a total dose of 39-42.5 Gy in 13-16 daily fractions of 2.5-3.2 Gy over three to five weeks.
This study, "Adoption of Hypofractionated Whole-Breast Irradiation for Early-Stage Breast Cancer: A National Cancer Data Base Analysis," is a retrospective review of 113,267 early-stage breast cancer patients in the National Cancer Data Base (NCDB) from 2004 to 2011 who were treated with radiation therapy and were eligible to receive HF-WBI, and examines the use of HF-WBI compared to CF-WBI and the factors, including facility type and patient's distance from the radiation treatment center, that influenced which type of WBI the patient received.
The NCDB, a joint program of the American College of Surgeons' Commission on Cancer and the American Cancer Society established in 1989, is a nationwide, facility-based data set that contains retrospective data on 70 percent of all newly diagnosed cancers in the United States.
The study identified data from early-stage breast cancer patients included in the NDCB from 2004 to 2011 who received adjuvant WBI and who were eligible to receive HF-WBI according to current guidelines and randomized trials. Eligible patients were age 50 or older at the time of diagnosis; had a first and only diagnosis of breast cancer; had pathologic stage T1-2 N0 breast cancer, based on the American Joint Committee on Cancer TNM staging classification; were treated with breast-conserving surgery; and did not receive chemotherapy. In this study, HF-WBI was defined as a fraction dose of 2.2 Gy and 4.0 Gy, and CF-WBI was defined was a fraction dose >1.5 Gy and <2.2 Gy. Regional radiation therapy total dose was limited to 40-66.4 Gy, and boost doses were limited to <21.6 Gy.
Patients who received regional nodal radiation therapy; who received brachytherapy, stereotactic radiation therapy and treatments delivered with electron, neutron or proton beams; who received fewer than 10 or more than 50 fractions; or who received radiation therapy as palliative care were not included in the analysis.
The study identified 113,267 female, early-stage breast cancer patients who were eligible for analysis. Of those patients, 11.7 percent (13,271) received HF-WBI, and 88.3 percent (99,996) received CF-WBI. Based on the data used in this study, 5.4 percent (677) of patients treated in 2004 received HF-WBI compared to the 22.8 percent (3,809) of patients treated in 2011 who received HF-WBI. While the use of HF-WBI increased, the use of CF-WBI decreased; however, CF-WBI was still prescribed for a majority of patients, with 94.6 percent (11,735) of patients receiving CF-WBI in 2004 and 77.2 percent (12,876) of patients receiving CF-WBI in 2011.
The study also examined factors that may have influenced whether a patient received HF-WBI or CF-WBI. Of the 113,267 patients who met the study criteria, 62.5 percent (70,801) of patients received treatment at a non-academic comprehensive community cancer center; 24.8 percent (28,137) of patients were treated at a community cancer program; 11.6 percent (13,174) of patients had treatment at an academic center; and 1.0 percent (1,155) of patients were treated at other types of facilities. Of the patients treated at non-academic comprehensive community cancer centers, 10.3 percent (7,313) received HF-WBI compared to 17.3 percent (4,830) of patients who had treatment at academic centers (odds ratio (OR) 0.51, 95 percent confidence interval (CI) 0.48-0.53). HF-WBI was delivered to 7.7 percent (1,018) of patients treated at community cancer programs compared to the 17.3 percent (4,830) of patients treated at academic centers (OR 0.38, 95 percent CI 0.35-0.42).
Based on the study data, distance from the cancer-reporting facility to the radiation therapy center also proved to be a factor in whether a patient received HF-WBI or CF-WBI. The NCDB data does not include the distance from a patient's residence to the treatment center. For this study, the distance was calculated from the cancer-reporting facility to the treatment center. A distance of 50 miles was classified as long distance. Of the eligible patients included in this study, 92.2 percent (104,442) of patients lived <50 miles from the treatment center; 4.2 percent (4,813) lived 50 miles from the treatment center; 3.5 percent (3,996) of patients did not have distance travelled data available. HF-WBI was more frequently prescribed to patients who live 50 miles from the treatment center (16.1 percent, n=775) compared to patients who live <50 miles from the treatment center (11.5 percent, n=11,957) (OR 1.57, 95 percent CI 1.44-1.72).
Independent variables included in the study were patient age, race, type of primary health insurance, median income in patient's zip code of residence by quartile, degree of rurality, urban influence of the patient's residence, as classified by the U.S. Department of Agriculture Economic Research Service, and the Charlson/Deyo comorbidity score. Cancer-related covariates evaluated were year of cancer diagnosis, tumor differentiation, size, estrogen receptor and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 assay results, and surgical margins.
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CSCI 6350 Artificial Intelligence: Minimax and Alpha-Beta Pruning Algorithms and Psuedocodes
Markers -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Animated example of Minimax (Nave): 03:03 Minimax (Nave) psuedocode walkthrough: 13:23 Animated...
By: CSCI Tutorials
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CSCI 6350 Artificial Intelligence: Minimax and Alpha-Beta Pruning Algorithms and Psuedocodes - Video